Title from container. Re-packaged in one container (28 x 17 cm.). Course No. 1369. 24 lectures (30 min. each). Great Courses Course guidebook includes bibliographical references (pages 321-334). Instructor, Professor Lawrence Weinstein.
Contents:
Disc 4. Viewing the world with radiation. Curve of binding energy: fission and fusion -- Alpha, beta, and gamma decay -- Radiation sources, natural and unnatural -- How dangerous is radiation? -- The liquid-drop model of the nucleus -- Disc 2. The quantum nucleus and magic numbers -- Particle accelerators: schools of scattering -- Detecting subatomic particles -- How to experiment with nuclear collisions -- Scattering nucleons in singles or in pairs -- Sea quarks, gluons, and the origin of mass -- Disc 3. Nuclear fusion in our Sun -- Making elements: big bang to neutron stars -- Splitting the nucleus -- Nuclear weapons were never "atomic" bombs -- Harnessing nuclear chain reactions -- Nuclear accidents and lessons learned -- Disc 4. The nuclear fuel cycle and advanced reactors -- Nuclear fusion: obstacles and achievements -- Killing cancer with isotopes, x-rays, protons -- Medical imaging: CT, PET, SPECT, and MRI -- Isotopes as clocks and fingerprints -- Viewing the world with radiation.
Summary:
Nuclear radiation is everywhere raining down on you from space, penetrating your body from the Sun, bombarding you from the food you eat and air you breathe, zapping you in medical tests, and pelting you from consumer products. How worried should you be? Nuclear Physics Explained teaches you the basics of nuclear physics and puts your mind at ease about most sources of radiation, while alerting you to what is truly risky. In 24 fast-paced, half-hour lectures, award-winning Professor Lawrence Weinstein of Old Dominion University explains the science, history, hazards, applications, and latest advances in the field, while also taking you inside the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility to show off the awe-inspiring machines that he uses in his research. Dr. Weinstein describes how nuclear bombs are made; the different designs for nuclear reactors and why those at Three Mile Island, Chernobyl, and Fukushima failed catastrophically; how cancer radiation treatments work; the principles behind the host of medical imaging tools from CT to PET to MRI; and uses of radiation for age-dating and fraud detection. Above all, you delve into the workings of the atomic nucleus, exploring neutrons, protons, quarks, gluons, radioactivity, and all major forms of radiation. You'll find that this notoriously complex subject is far more accessible and intriguing than you ever dreamed.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.